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Chapter Summary

1 Emperor – An introduction about spirituality, and a children’s story. A declaration of intent that praises clarity of thought, succinctness of expression, utmost honesty, and practicality of application in discussing matters of spiritual, emotional and philosophical interest. States the author’s intention to speak plainly and simply, free of hubris, pseudo-scientific imagery, and poetic symbolism. Introduces his own credo and spiritual principles.

2 Inferno – What makes our lives unbearable, including beasts in dark forests. Suggests in the first instance that our lives are inherently unmanageable, and that we respond negatively to those events, situations, or events beyond our control which fail to conform to our preconceived design of the way the world should be. It explains the concept of a fully realized personal architecture of the world, and how that structure comes into conflict with the world as it truly is.

3 Hero – The hope that we may endure, especially when shopping. Investigates the concept of Hope as it manifests in our lives, and proposes using its positive aspects to affirm that everything will be ok despite the challenges we may face. It suggests that we seek to trust and accept that everything in the world is exactly the way it is truly supposed to be, despite our objections, and that doing so will fundamentally change our perception of those difficulties.

4 Pig – A decision to change our lives, and losing fights with pigs. Investigates the courageous nature of important decisions and resolutions in life, and the resilience and determination that is required to let go of trying to master and direct the course of external events to suit ourselves. It reiterates the simple premise that our primary difficulty is us, and that if we are to markedly improve the psychological, emotional, and spiritual quality of our lives, we must make the courageous decision to question everything we know about ourselves, our world, and our relationship to it.

5 Stadium – A synthesis of first principles, and a discussion of football. Reviews and synthesizes the core principle that we cannot control the world, that the cause of our discontent is ourselves, and that changing our perception of the world might change our understanding of our problems. It proposes that we trust that everything is exactly as it should be. It discusses the misguided investing of external events with a non-inherent emotional content according to our preferences, and further develops the analogy of two architectural structures in conflict.